Plan dropped to protect rights of gay-wedding photographers

Jan. 30, 2014

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PIERRE — Sen. Ernie Otten has withdrawn his proposed legislation giving individuals a right to refuse to provide services to weddings they held a sincere belief against.

That legislation, Senate Bill 67, was intended to protect people such as bakers or wedding photographers from being forced to participate in same-sex weddings if they believed those marriages to be wrong.

Several people in states with same-sex marriage have been sued for just that. But those individuals were sued under those states’ anti-discrimination laws, which barred discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. South Dakota law does not protect sexual orientation as a class.

Otten, R-Tea, said it was that legal advice that led him to withdraw the bill.

“I’ve been checking with lawyers … to make sure it was in good standing,” Otten said. “I found out we already had protections in for the folks.”

He withdrew the bill, a new ability this year for South Dakota lawmakers. The Legislative Procedure committee voted to allow lawmakers to withdraw legislation just last week. Previously, the only option for an unwanted bill was for the sponsor to ask a committee to kill it.